How much weight can you shave off of an A-Body...and still have it look/drive like an A-Body?

Yeah, That sounds very similar to my goals. I'd like to be under 3000# with good handling suspension and A/C.
The LS has great heads so it's pretty easy to make good power. I'm probably going to swap in a 5.9 magnum. They are a good package and easy to swap and cheap-ish.
The 360 magnum is the best Mopar choice in my opinion for any A body…even better than the new hemi if you are on a budget…I did a 360 magnum build on this site a few years back and it made great power…with some decent heads you can get 450hp no problem